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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28644927">I Will Keep You</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Perfect_Insanity/pseuds/Perfect_Insanity'>Perfect_Insanity</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Walking Dead (TV), daryl dixon - Fandom</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M, daryl dixon - Freeform, the walking dead - Freeform, twd</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-20 22:48:18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>4,068</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28644927</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Perfect_Insanity/pseuds/Perfect_Insanity</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>I know I've been away for a very long time and I apologize for my long, long absence. I hope to get back into this. With everything going on this past year, motivation has been tricky. And it never feels like an appropriate time to post. But here's a request I got on Tumblr a while back :)</p>
<p>The Request:</p>
<p>"Can I request a one-shot where Daryl dies at the end? And the whole thing is basically fluff and angst"</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Daryl Dixon/Original Female Character(s)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>I Will Keep You</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Daryl Dixon was beyond description. You had a few people here and there throughout your time with him asking why you picked him. You understood the curiosity on some level. Daryl was quiet, sometimes had a mean look on his face, and withdrew all the time like a turtle sinking into its own shell. But you’d broken into that shell a long time ago and you knew his heart. He was a good man and you could never imagine life without him.</p>
<p>	“We’re almost ready for that run tomorrow,” you said as the two of you were getting ready for bed. You were in his bedroom with him packing tomorrow’s supplies into his backpack, “Gotta get up bright and early. Need me to wake you?”</p>
<p>	Daryl shook his head, “Nah. I’ll probably end up wakin’ you. Ya know, you don’t have to come with me. I can go alone.”</p>
<p>	“Not a chance,” you said, “I know you like to do things on your own but there’s no need to. You’re stuck with me, Dixon. Deal with it.”</p>
<p>	Daryl smirked, “Guess I am. I can’t complain though. Ya ain’t so bad.”</p>
<p>	“Not so bad?” you chuckled, “Thanks for that. We’ll be fine, Daryl. Some alone time wouldn’t be so terrible, right?”</p>
<p>	“Not at all,” Daryl said as he started to fidget. Your relationship was still pretty new to him. You knew him enough to know that he needed things to go slowly. For someone so tough, he was rather skittish. You never minded the pace you were going. It gave you time to enjoy every moment with him. </p>
<p>	Daryl had been sitting on his bed the entire time you were packing and now he was running his hands up and down the comforter, as if suddenly aware of where he was sitting. You could see the wheels turning in his head and you quickly shot up onto your feet, “I didn’t mean it um…I didn’t mean it like…like that or anything. I meant more like um…connecting and-and stuff like that.”</p>
<p>	“Doesn’t it bother you that I…” Daryl paused, “That um…that this…this is going so slow?”</p>
<p>	“Not at all,” you replied, “Am I used to relationships going faster than this? Sure. But every relationship is different, ya know? I mean, it’s not just about me. You’re in this too so you’ve gotta be comfortable too.”</p>
<p>	“Yeah?” Daryl said.</p>
<p>	You nodded, “Plus, I dunno, your kisses are rare but…I guess you could say that’s a part of what makes them enjoyable. Because they’re so special. I can tell this is making my die on the inside so I’ll stop there.”</p>
<p>	Daryl shrugged, “Not dying on the inside. This is just crazy. I…I got lucky. Meeting you.”</p>
<p>	You came towards him and kissed him tenderly, holding his face, “So did I. You’re wonderful, more wonderful than you give yourself credit for.”</p>
<p>	Just as Daryl had predicted, he ended up being the one to wake you the next morning. It was the crack of dawn, the sun just barely peeking out. You weren’t expecting to be up this early so you were having a hard time staying awake. While Daryl was doing a last minute check of all his supplies, you were leaned against the island in the kitchen, head rested in your hands. A light tap on the butt startled you and you let out a squeak in surprise. Daryl stood behind you, his hands rested on your hips as he chuckled.</p>
<p>	“Can’t handle it, Y/N?” Daryl teased.</p>
<p>	You stood up straight and started laughing, scratching your head sleepily, “I’m fine. But…why are we up with the birds?”</p>
<p>	“Gotta get an early start,” Daryl said, “I told you last night that I can go by myself. Offer still stands.”</p>
<p>	“Nope!” you exclaimed, suddenly full of energy, “You can’t keep me away, Daryl. Not a chance. Let’s get going then! We going on your bike?”</p>
<p>	“Not this time,” Daryl replied, “Takin’ a truck, fit more supplies that way. Think I know a place we can check out.”</p>
<p>	“Sounds like a plan,” you said. You packed up the truck and as the sun rose, you were on your way to this place Daryl was talking about. You didn’t get many chances to be alone so this was a bit of a treat for you to have this time with him. Daryl wasn’t much of a conversationalist but it was a comfortable silence between the two of you. You held his hand while he drove and he squeezed your hand in response. It was a nice surprise as he normally moved his hand away or just let his hand lay limp in yours.</p>
<p>	“How far is this place?” you inquired after about an hour of driving, “Should we be traveling so far from home?”</p>
<p>	“Probably just another hour,” Daryl said, “I came across it when I was out hunting the other day. We might not make it back until late tonight.”</p>
<p>	“You sure we don’t need to stop for the night?”</p>
<p>	“Nah.” Daryl shifted in his seat, “Should be good. Unless disaster strikes.”</p>
<p>	“Maybe…maybe we could,” you murmured, “Stay somewhere for the night.”</p>
<p>	Daryl frowned, “Why would we do that?”</p>
<p>	“I just thought some time alone would do us some good,” you said, “Just an idea. You seem to be more comfortable with me when we’re alone.”</p>
<p>	“I am?” Daryl said.</p>
<p>	You nodded. It might’ve been stupid to point it out as he might stop but you held up your hand wrapped up in his, “You don’t normally hold my hand like this back home.”</p>
<p>	Daryl glanced at your hand for a moment then looked back at the road ahead of him, “Guess I didn’t notice. I guess we could find a place to stay the night if you really wanted to do that.”</p>
<p>	“What is this place you found?” you inquired.</p>
<p>	“Just a convenience store,” Daryl said, “But it’s been boarded up and it’s kinda hidden in this shopping center. Hoping it’s not empty.”</p>
<p>	“We can just stay there then,” you said, beaming, “Problem solved. We could tell everyone we were hiding from a horde of walkers. They’d believe that, right?”</p>
<p>	Daryl actually laughed at that, “Sneaky, Y/N.”</p>
<p>	You leaned over and kissed Daryl’s cheek, “That’s me!”</p>
<p>	After about an hour and a half of smooth and uneventful travels, they reached the shopping center Daryl had been referring to. Like he’d said, everything was boarded up and it was more or less untouched. That kinda luck was almost too good. Daryl pulled up in a parking spot in front of the convenience store and he tapped her on the leg, “Let’s get going.”</p>
<p>	“You’re so right,” you said as you climbed out of the truck. You tossed Daryl an empty backpack and threw yours onto your shoulders, “Relatively untouched. I can’t believe you found this, Daryl. You did good.”</p>
<p>	“Thanks,” Daryl said. He grabbed his crossbow and started for the door with you right behind him, your gun drawn. Pulling a crowbar from his backpack, he turned to you, giving you a slight nod, “You ready?”</p>
<p>	“Always,” you replied. Daryl started by pounding on the boarded up doors with the crowbar. You were met with faint growls, “Doesn’t sound like there’s too many.”</p>
<p>	“Sounds like they’re far away,” Daryl added, “Probably stuck. We should be fine, just gotta keep an eye out. Let’s go.”</p>
<p>	Daryl jammed the crowbar in between the boards and with a few hard pulls, he pried the boards off the front doors. You caught yourself staring, watching the muscles in his arms flex as he pulled on the crowbar with all the strength he had, the way his jaw clenched when he grunted, you loved it all.</p>
<p>	“Y/N,” he said, breaking your concentration, “Y/N, you still there? What’re you starin’ at me for?”</p>
<p>	You shook your head and cleared your throat, pushing your hair forward to hide the redness spreading on your cheeks, “Nothing. Just lost in my own thoughts. Let’s get in there.”</p>
<p>	Daryl smirked. He knew you were full of shit but he wasn’t going to say it. He grabbed you by the hand and pulled you a little closer behind him, “Stay with me. Still got walkers lurkin’ around even if they’re stuck. Stay alert.”</p>
<p>	“Always,” you said. The store was rougher on the inside than it was on the outside. Thick layers of dust and dirt covered the floor and shelves, blood smeared along the walls and windows, some of it covering the counters and registers. Some shelves had already been cleared and some cans and boxes were littering the floor. You were treading carefully as you could still hear the walker snarling from the other side of the store. You bent over and picked up a can off the floor, wiping the dust off the label, “Should we just start clearing shelves?”</p>
<p>	“Yep,” Daryl said, “We’ll sort it out when we get back.”</p>
<p>	The two of you started clearing shelves of every food item you could get your hands on. You were even able to snatch some medical supplies. By the time you finished, your backpacks were overflowing and somewhat difficult to carry on your backs. But you were proud of your accomplishments. Everyone back home would be thrilled to see all of this stuff. It would last your thriving community a few months.</p>
<p>	“This is the best day I’ve had,” you remarked as you and Daryl threw your backpacks into the truck, “I can’t believe we managed to fit the entire store into just a few bags.”</p>
<p>	Daryl grunted as he tossed a duffel bag into the back of the truck, “Yep. Don’t get too many wins these days.”</p>
<p>	“True,” you replied. You leaned against the side of the truck, folding your arms across your chest, “So…should we head back?”</p>
<p>	Daryl stepped out of the truck, looking around at the desolate space around you. It was late afternoon by now. With the way things were going, you two would be home before the sun went down. But he was warming up to the idea of spending some time alone with you. And once you took care of that walker that was hanging around inside the store, the store could be yours for the night.</p>
<p>	“Thought you wanted to stick around,” Daryl said, “Leave in the morning. Wouldn’t you still wanna do that?”</p>
<p>	“You’d be willing?” you said, “I don’t want you feeling uncomfortable just to make me happy.”</p>
<p>	Daryl grabbed your hand, “I’m not. I…I wanna try, Y/N. I’ve been moving so slow for stupid reasons. Just…fear and…denial I guess.”</p>
<p>	“Denial?” you said, “About what?”</p>
<p>	“That you would…” Daryl paused, shrugging his shoulders, “Would give someone like me the time of day.”</p>
<p>	“Daryl,” you mumbled. You came towards him with your arms stretched out. Cupping his face in your hands, you kissed his lips tenderly, “How many times do I have to tell you that you’re amazing? And that I’m so lucky to have found you? I’m the lucky one, me. You’re the best thing to ever happen to me. You really are.”</p>
<p>	“I think you might be crazy,” Daryl teased, “But thank you. I’m…happier than I ever thought I could be.”</p>
<p>	“That’s good to hear,” you said. Daryl wrapped his arms his arms around your waist, his movements slow and hesitant as he was still quite nervous. You rested your hands on his broad shoulders. He kissed you softly and tucked your hair behind your ear. You closed your eyes and let out a content sigh, “So, do you wanna stay or go back?”</p>
<p>	“Let’s stay,” Daryl said, “We’ll take out those walkers that are stuck and then we’ll set up camp for the night. Kinda want you for myself tonight. Just us.”</p>
<p>	“We can arrange that,” you said. You went back into the store and you were dreading having to go and take care of the walkers, however many there were. It wasn’t that you were afraid. It was just inconvenient killing them and dragging their bodies outside. You and Daryl had made it a point to avoid the back end of the store so you wouldn’t make too much noise and aggravate the walkers. But now it was time to let them out so you could get rid of them. When you reached the back of the store, you could hear a few more walkers shuffling around.</p>
<p>	“Shouldn’t be too many,” Daryl said, “I’ll take care of ‘em. You make sure that back door over there is locked.”</p>
<p>	You nodded and split off. Daryl headed for the bathrooms while you went for the back door, which you found to be wide open. As you leaned out to grab the doorknob and shut the door, you attracted the attention of a large horde of walkers that were wandering around the back alley behind the store. One or two walkers, you could close the door and they’d fall apart trying to fight you. But with the horde facing you right now, they were all stronger than you. Their snarls had soon started attracting other walkers that were spread out across the entire back end of the shopping center and even more started coming. You weren’t going to be able to shut this door. This was beyond inconvenience now. This was true fear. A few of them were close enough to you to start snapping their jaws at you. With both hands on the doorknob, all you could do was jump away from their rotting mouths.</p>
<p>	“Daryl!” you shouted, “We gotta go!”</p>
<p>	Letting go of the door, you took off and the walkers all shoved themselves through the door. Daryl was bouncing off the balls of his feet as he was waiting for you, waving you forward. You weren’t as fast of a runner as him and you were having somewhat of a tough time keeping up with him. A part of you was so focused on how scared you were that you couldn’t make your legs work any faster.</p>
<p>	One of the walkers managed to get a hold of your shirt, yanking you to the ground. You went down with a shriek, kicking your feet as the walker pulled you closer to the horde. Several of them lowered down to the ground while you were swinging at them and scooting away. With so many hands coming from all directions, it was hard to keep yourself in one piece.</p>
<p>	“Y/N!” Daryl cried out. There were so many cold hands on you, Daryl’s warm grip couldn’t be missed. He reached for you with no hesitation or regard for his own safety, “I’ve got you, Y/N. I’ve got you.”</p>
<p>	With Daryl’s help, you were back on your feet and headed for the truck. With panicked breath, Daryl started up the truck, the tires skidding loudly as he slammed his foot down on the gas pedal and sped off down the road. Now that the ordeal was over, you sobbed into your palms, processing what had just happened. You two had almost ended up dead. You checked yourself for bites or scratches with your teary eyes while Daryl drove, steering a little unsteadily.</p>
<p>	“Holy shit,” you panted as you wiped your tears away, “Bad idea I guess. I’m sorry. Let’s just go home.”</p>
<p>	Daryl squeezed the steering wheel, pulling over without a word. Daryl was always difficult to read and now wasn’t any different. He took a deep breath, his hands dropping onto his lap as he pulled the key from the ignition.</p>
<p>	“Daryl?” you said, “Daryl? I said I was sorry. I’m really sorry. I-I didn’t think it would end up like this. We can go home.”</p>
<p>	“Don’t be sorry,” Daryl muttered, “It was all worth it, Y/N. Every minute.”</p>
<p>	“What’re you talking about?” you said. Daryl held out his right arm, his once smooth skin marred by a bite wound. It looked more like teeth had scraped his arm rather than bit down on it but it didn’t matter. You’d experienced this a thousand times but this time you were completely shattered. Before you even knew what you were doing, you started to scream, “No! No that was already there! No! That wasn’t a walker! A walker didn’t do this! It was already there! Tell me it was already there!”</p>
<p>	“It wasn’t,” Daryl said, his voice cracking, “I’m sorry, Y/N.”</p>
<p>	“No, no, no, don’t you say you’re sorry,” you whimpered, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have suggested we stay.”</p>
<p>	“You couldn’t have known what would be there,” Daryl said, “I don’t want you to blame yourself.”</p>
<p>	“You should’ve just let them take me,” you continued on, shaking your head, “It shouldn’t be you. It shouldn’t be you.”</p>
<p>	“I never would’ve let it be you,” Daryl said, “I almost made you leave without me. But I wanted this last night with you.”</p>
<p>	“Oh god don’t say that,” you cried, “How…how much longer do you think we have?”</p>
<p>	“Might be until morning,” Daryl said, “Don’t take me back home. Not yet. We can still have our night together, can’t we? I still want that.”</p>
<p>	You nodded, “Yeah. Yeah of course we can.”</p>
<p>	Daryl got out of the truck and you followed, letting him lead you into the woods. He had a tight grip on your hand as you walked together. He didn’t take you too deep into the woods, just deep enough to keep you hidden from anyone that passed by. The two of you sat by a tree and you rested your head on his shoulder, smiling at his thumb rubbing your hand, “How’re you feeling?”</p>
<p>	“Still fine,” he said, “Not sure how much longer I will though.”</p>
<p>	“This wasn’t my plan for us,” you said. You knew you were babbling at this point but you didn’t want any of your final moments together to be filled with silence, “Then again, I don’t think I had a plan for us. Did you?”</p>
<p>	“Not really,” he said, “I was…enjoying the moment. I do know one thing though. I know that I was…I was really falling for you, Y/N.”</p>
<p>	“Now we’ll never get to make any plans,” you said, “It’s not fair.”</p>
<p>	“I know,” he said, “But I don’t want you to suffer because of me. You move on, you live. You understand me?”</p>
<p>	“How can you expect me to move on and live without you?” you said, “I’ve already known the best.”</p>
<p>	Daryl grabbed you by the chin and pressed his lips to yours in a tender kiss, “It’s gonna be okay, Y/N. You’ll see.”</p>
<p>	You spent the rest of the night sitting at that tree just talking. Over the course of the night, Daryl got quieter and quieter. Making full sentences became harder and harder. Once the fever came and he started sweating and shaking, you knew it wouldn’t be much longer. But he still begged you to keep talking to him, as if that would help him now. By morning, he was barely able to keep his eyes open.</p>
<p>	“Keep talking, Y/N,” he said for the millionth time, “It’ll help me stay awake. Just wanna hear your voice, Y/N. Just…just wanna…wanna hear your voice.”</p>
<p>	His head was laying on your lap now and you wept as you stroked his sweat soaked hair, “You made it to the sunrise, Daryl.”</p>
<p>	“You remember what I told you, Y/N,” he said, “You move on, you live.”</p>
<p>	“I’ll try,” you said, “I’m not sure if this is the right time to tell you…but I guess I won’t ever get to say it if I don’t do it now.”</p>
<p>	“Tell me.”</p>
<p>	“I love you so much, Daryl Dixon,” you blurted out, “And I can’t believe that we won’t be taking on the world together. The idea of living an entire lifetime without you…I can hardly stand it.”</p>
<p>	“You’re gonna be just fine,” Daryl said, “You’re strong. You’re brave. And Y/N?”</p>
<p>	“Hm?”</p>
<p>	“I love you too,” he said. He grabbed onto your hand weakly, “You’re the best thing that ever happened to me too, Y/N.”</p>
<p>	You felt his grip on your hand loosen and his body became heavier on your lap. Your soft weeps turned into loud sobs. Your chest ached as you held his body against yours, your shaky hands slowly pulled your knife out. It took every ounce of effort to keep from screaming as you plunged the blade into the back of Daryl’s head before he could turn. You laid your head on his for a while, crying so hard you thought you might actually die. You couldn’t avoid going back home forever, you knew that. You got Daryl’s body into the truck with difficulty but you still couldn’t get in and drive. You wandered a little down the road, trying to get all your tears out before you had to get home. How could you feel this lost? He was just one person. You had gone your entire life without him and yet you couldn’t figure out how to continue on without him. What were you supposed to do now?</p>
<p>	During your stroll, you came across an abandoned car. You barely gave it much thought until you heard something from inside. Taking a peek, you found a small baby in the back seat of the car. The drivers side of the car was stained with blood, a trail leading away from the car. You could only assume the parents were long gone and the baby still looked pretty new. It didn’t seem as though much time went by as the baby was still calm and didn’t appear malnourished.</p>
<p>	“You’re alone too,” you remarked. You opened up the back door and reached in for the car seat. The baby cooed and grunted as it was slightly jostled by you pulling it from the car. On the floor of the car was the diaper bag and you took that as well, “A blue onesie, you must be a boy.”</p>
<p>	The baby kicked his feet as he started to fuss. The noise would surely attract walkers so you rushed back to the truck before he could start crying. Once in the truck, you took him from the car seat and cradled him in your arms, laying his tiny body on your chest. Feeling your warmth calmed him before he shed a single tear. You gently stroked his back, more tears slipping from your tightly shut eyes, “It’s alright, little baby. You’re safe now. I’m gonna take care of you.”</p>
<p>	A five-year-old little boy was a lot to keep up with sometimes. But playing with all the other kids did a pretty good job of wearing him out. He had a very vague understanding of where he came from. He knew his birth parents were gone but he never really felt sad about it. He only knew one mother and that was you. You had devoted your entire heart and soul to this little boy. He was rambunctious and wild but also so sweet and loving. You adored this little boy. </p>
<p>	“You had quite a day, didn’t you?” you said as you were putting him to bed, “Did you have fun with your friends?”</p>
<p>	“Yep!” he exclaimed cheerfully. He stopped after that, tugging at a loose thread on his blanket, “Hey, Mama? Can I ask you something?”</p>
<p>	“Ask away, sweetheart.”</p>
<p>	“I saw you today,” he said, “You were crying over a vest I think. What for?”</p>
<p>	“Oh, you saw that,” you murmured, “Well, I guess you could say he was your father.”</p>
<p>	“Really?” he said.</p>
<p>	You nodded, “But…he died right before I found you. I was so heartbroken, I wasn’t sure what to do. He told me to move on and live, that I’d be okay. When I laid eyes on you, I knew he was right. The two of you were the best things to happen to me. I’m lucky to have known him and I am even luckier to have found you.”</p>
<p>	“Wow,” he said.</p>
<p>	“He would have loved you,” you continued.</p>
<p>	“Is he the one you named me after?” he asked.</p>
<p>	You grinned, fighting back tears as you pushed his hair away from his face, “Yes. He’ll always be protecting us and watching over us. We’re gonna be just fine, Daryl.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hope you guys liked this one shot :) writing this was super hard because how would one write a suitable death for Daryl? He'd obviously need a good one. So, hopefully I did this some justice haha.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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